As Long As I'm Living, My Baby She'll Be

Love You Forever by Robert Munsch is a classic children's book, read to little ones all over the world. But there is something about the background of the book's iconic words and the personal story of the author that many don't know.

my Love You Forever copy in Lily's memory chest

According to Robert Munsch from his website:

Love You Forever started as a song.
"I'll love you forever,
I'll like you for always,
as long as I'm living
my baby you'll be."
I made that up after my wife and I had two babies born dead. The song was my song to my dead babies. For a long time I had it in my head and I couldn't even sing it because every time I tried to sing it I cried. It was very strange having a song in my head that I couldn't sing.
For a long time it was just a song but one day, while telling stories at a big theatre at the University of Guelph, it occurred to me that I might be able to make a story around the song.
Out popped Love You Forever, pretty much the way it is in the book.

Somehow knowing this, it makes the words that much more poignant, doesn't it? The words mean something entirely different to those of us who have lost our precious babies, for they truly will always be our babies for as long as we live. Not just because they are our beloved children, but quite literally because we will never watch them grow.

Thank you, Roxanne, for this lovely photo

Here is a video of Robert Munsch singing the "Love You Forever" song, the way he hears it in his head:

Listen to Robert Munsch read the entire book:

Based on this book, Little Orchard Co started something called the Love You Forever Project. They are making apparel with the words "Love You Forever" on them. They have shirts for women, men, kids, and onesies.

About the project from the website:

This tee was created for every person who has loved a child. Whether it was just 2 lines on a pregnancy test, whether it was before 40 weeks, whether they took them home from the hospital or not, whether they hold them in their arms, or only in their heart.
This tee was inspired by my sister who lost both her precious son and daughter within 10 months. Until that happened, I didn't know much about stillbirth and infant loss.
This tee is meant to bring awareness to the issue of stillbirth and infant loss. To the army of warrior parents, grandparents, and family members, who have lost their precious children, I hope it will start conversation, acknowledge stories, and inspire.

Profits from the sale of this project are given to Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep, which offers free professional portraiture photography to those walking through the loss of a baby. 

Here I am in the shirt I got... I'm excited to have this to wear to special events and on meaningful dates. I also had gotten a onesie for my niece to wear as well as my future hoped-for babies, but ended up giving it away to a grieving couple who had just lost their baby. I definitely plan on ordering another one.

In recent years, several sources have shared the story behind Love You Forever, including The Huffington Post.

 

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Now I Sleep...

I want to share a beautiful album that has come to mean a lot to me over the past few months. It is called "Now I Sleep" and is composed, performed, and produced by a very talented musician named John Albert Thomas. It has beautiful solo piano music with songs written for those who mourn the loss of a baby. In 2009, John was inspired by the work of Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep, who I have talked about on my blog before and so wish I would have been offered this incredible service when I had Lily.

This is what John wrote on his website about the album:

In 2009, inspired by the compassionate work of Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep (NILMDTS), I set out to compose an album of original solo piano music for ten families who mourned the loss of a baby. I wanted to create a musical gift for remembrance and healing. 
After ten emotional interviews, several months at the piano, and a few days in the studio, I was pleased to finally announce the release of Now I Sleep – Solo Piano in April 2011. 
This album is about giving. Ten families gave me their tragic stories. God gave me the gift of music. Today I am passing this gift along to you. 
Please download this album, enjoy it, and use it freely in any of your non-profit media projects. You can pay what you want, or enter $0 for a free download! 
For the best sound quality and a much more meaningful experience, I highly recommend the Now I Sleep Deluxe CD, which includes two bonus tracks. It was designed with the grieving family in mind, but it will make a wonderful addition to any solo piano collection. 
If you would like to use this music in your commercial business, please purchase a royalty-free music license. I will send a complimentary copy of the Now I Sleep Deluxe CD as a thank you. 
Don’t forget to click the Share link to help spread the word on Facebook, Twitter, your blog, your newsletter, and more. You never know who might find comfort through this music! 
With much gratitude, 
John Albert Thomas

I found this album online and just knew that it was the one I wanted to include in the hospital comfort boxes I am putting together to donate to the hospital where Lily was born, to be given to those going through the loss of a baby, whether through miscarriage, stillbirth, or neonatal loss. I wrote John telling him what I was planning to do and he offered to give me the CD's at 50% off and said he'd ship them to me for free! Thank you again, John! That is so kind of you. It is my prayer that whoever receives this CD will be blessed by it like I have been. If you are interested in purchasing the CD for your own care packages, contact John and ask him about his bereavement rate.

I have enjoyed this music so much and will often listen to it on repeat. It is great music to blog/write/read/fall asleep to, as it is so very soothing. The song that gets me every time the most and seems to speak what I cannot put into words is "Smile Again." It is so very powerful and bittersweet. It pulls at the heart strings. All of these songs have brought me such comfort and healing. A thread of hope runs through each piece and points to the Lord, who is the Great Comforter and Peace-Giver.

Here is a video about the album and my favorite song on the album.

As John says, you can download the album for free, but I greatly encourage supporting this artist and purchasing one of the high-quality albums to add to your music library, especially those who have lost a baby.

I have embed the CD for you to take a listen and hear how beautiful the music is. If you are ever visiting on my blog and want to listen some more, I have added it on the left-hand sidebar. :)

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